Owner: 2012-2016 Business Plan Summary Program Protective Services Service grouping By-law Enforcement Service By-law Enforcement, Licensing and Property Standards Type Public Service George Kotsifas, Director of Building Control, Planning, Environmental & Engineering Services Strategic Priority Community Vitality Purpose The purpose of the Municipal Law Enforcement Services area is to seek compliance with City bylaws, primarily on private and on public property which focus on health and safety, consumer protection, nuisance control and quality of life issues. The clients are the general public including tourists and business clientele visiting London and all property owners and tenants. All citizens benefit from the enforcement of City by-laws as neighbourhoods and overall quality of life in the community is improved. Key processes By-law Enforcement Financial & Staffing In $000s Operating budget 2010 Actual 2011 Revised Budget Expenditure: 1,884 2,104 Non-tax revenue: 1,254 1,421 Net (tax supported): Capital budget Expenditure: Non-tax revenue: Net (tax supported): 2010 Revised Budget 630 683 2011 Revised Budget 0 0 Staffing FTEs: 24.3 25.7 Percentage of expenditures budget (all rate sources): Annual per household cost of net budget ($): Enforcement of approximately 25 municipal by-laws to maintain neighbourhood stability and to address community and quality of life issues. Utilize private contractors to clean properties of debris and rubbish. Private contractors are retained to undertake private property clean-ups including the removal of derelict vehicles. All costs are recovered as the costs of bringing the properties into compliance are invoiced to the property owners and added to the taxes if the invoices are not paid. 0.09 0.10 3.80 4.07 Property Standards Enforcement The City inspects buildings and properties where there is a complaint concerning the interior or exterior condition. Property Standards Officers address property maintenance and occupancy standards. These standards are intended to remedy issues of public or occupant safety in or around existing buildings or on vacant land. If Property Standards Orders are not adhered to, the City may Page 1 of 7
undertake the works to bring the property into compliance with the costs being borne by the property owner. To implement this program, private contractors including general contractors, plumbers, electricians, roofers and graffiti removal specialists undertake the works to bring the property into compliance. Taxi and Business Licence Issuance and Enforcement Address consumer protection and public safety and to provide a level playing field amongst London businesses through enforcement of Taxi and Business License By-laws. Residential Rental Unit Licence Issuance and Enforcement To identify and address sub-standard housing conditions in smaller scale residential rental properties. The by-law was passed by Council to proactively address substandard housing conditions in rental units and to protect the amenity, character and stability of residential areas. The by -law was approved in September 2009 and was implemented in March 2010. Vital Services Administration and Enforcement Prevent the disconnection of vital service at a rented residential unit if the landlord is obliged to pay for the service and has failed to do so. Zoning By-law Enforcement In response to complaints and referrals from partner enforcement agencies such as Police and Fire Prevention, enforce compliance with the Zoning By-law to ensure that compliance with the Council approved Zoning By-law is adhered to. Illegal land uses can negatively impact the stability of neighbourhoods and can introduce negative impacts which may lower the quality of life in a neighbourhood. Regulatory/Policy landscape Service Delivery method Mandatory Legislative New council direction, new regulations, legislative changes Recent amendments to the Municipal Act to address nuisance issues and provide a broader scope of business licensing. With new provincial legislation, additional categories of business licences will be considered for the purposes of nuisance control and quality of life issues. Current state of this service The Building Division By-law Enforcement section is responsible for the enforcement of municipal by-laws primarily on private property and on public property and development of new municipal by-laws as issues emerge (ie. noise, marijuana grow operations, etc.). Additionally this section is responsible for the enforcement of by-laws related to Property Standards, Business Licensing, Taxi's, Zoning, Fencing (including pool fencing) and Residential Rental Licensing. Staff respond primarily to enquiries and complaints and provide inspections within approved service levels. Pro-active enforcement of some by-laws is also provided in certain areas as directed by Council. Staff provide mediation and dispute resolution services to the public where possible to address complaints and issues between various parties. Where compliance with municipal by-laws is not achieved, Notices and Orders may be issued and works may be Page 2 of 7
undertaken to bring the properties into compliance. The costs of the works are invoiced to the property owner. The Building Division's Business Services section is responsible for the issuance of licences in accordance with regulations stipulated in the Business, Taxi and Residential Rental Unit Licencing By-laws. Staff respond to enquiries received pertaining to licences. Staff process licence applications and circulate them to the relevant commenting agencies (Zoning, Property Standards, Fire, Health, Police)who in turn provide information to the Licence Manager. Vital Services providers notify the Business Services section prior to disconnecting services to a residential unit if a landlord obliged to pay for the service fails to do so. Staff initiate inspections to confirm occupancy of the residential unit, conduct title searches to verify property ownership, pay the utility bill, and initiate documentation as required to add the cost to the property owner's tax bill. Currently, the Enforcement section is working towards initiating responses to complaints within two business days. The goal is to provide prompt responses to complaints addressing community quality of life issues with an enhanced focus of undertaking proactive targeted enforcement projects. The volume of complaints peaked in 2010, mainly due to referrals associated with the residential licencing by-law. There was also an increase in compliance with By-law Orders. This is directly attributed to the increase in media attention given to by-law related issues and the consequences of ignoring City-issued Orders. Recent enhancements to economy, efficiency and effectiveness Inspection fees for all enforcement activities were introduced in 2010. Non-compliance inspections are charged $95 per inspection. This fee is charged to off-set the costs of inspections where no action has been taken to bring an issue into compliance with specified by-laws. In 2010, two clean-up crews were employed to address the volume of required property clean - ups. In response to a public tender, the cost of the clean-ups was greatly reduced from previous years. The introduction of student clean up crews during the peak summer months was very cost effective as the students were involved with graffiti removal when they were not undertaking property clean-ups. Future direction of this service As by-law violations emerge in neighbourhoods, there is an increase in community and Council requests to undertake neighbourhood by-law enforcement blitzes to proactively address community issues. Many forms of blitzes involve partner enforcement agencies including London Police and Fire Prevention. Proactive, targeted enforcement blitzes were supported by Council as the most cost effective and efficient methods to address neighbourhood quality of life and nuisance issues (December 17, 2007). Staff have conducted several proactive blitzes with partner enforcement agencies which resulted in neighbourhood reinvestment and quality of life improvements. For many citizens, the initial contact they may have with an Officer is receipt of an Order or copy of a by-law which is allegedly violated. Better public education is required to provide information on by-laws and the rationale for their existence. This includes the development of pamphlets, posters and display tables at trade shows. Page 3 of 7
The Business Licencing By-law should be reviewed to consider new categories / licences focusing on consumer protection, nuisance control and quality of life. It is anticipated that no additional staff complement will be required to administer and enforce these new objectives. A near budget increase (given that costs are primarily associated with staffing and vehicles) will result in staffing reductions and therefore a reduction or cancellation of partnered enforcement blitzes. Response times to customer enquiries and complaints will also be negatively impacted with a reduction of staff. Objectives next 4 years Enhance public communication and consultation programs Enhanced public engagement for by-law issues. Previous community meetings were held on a monthly basis with Neighbourhood Watch London to address public safety, neighbourhood crime and quality of life issues. A greater emphasis needs to be taken on educating the public with respect to the background of various by-laws in an effort to assist the public in addressing compliance issues. Expected completion year 2012 Division responsible Building Control Actions Better communications for by-law issues with the community. Outcomes and measures Number of pamphlets produced Establishing enforcement partnerships Establish co-operative partnerships with enforcement agencies including Fire Protection, London Police, and the Health Unit to address matters that overlap enforcement jurisdictions. Expected completion year 2012 Division responsible Building Control Actions Co-ordinated inspections to reduce overlap Outcomes and measures Number of co-ordinated inspections undertaken. Licence Issuance To streamline licence application review and approval processes in order to expedite the issuance of licences. This will involve the introduction of mobile technologies. Expected completion year 2012 Division responsible Building Control Actions Implement a licencing module to the database system used for permits and enforcement. The integration of the licence data will facilitate and improve licence inspection and approval processes Outcomes and measures Increased number of inspections through use of integrated mobile databases. Streamlined data base management. Page 4 of 7
Emerging issues and challenges AODA Potential challenge of dealing with implementation of the Accessibility for Ontarian with Disabilities Act (AODA). This could include required inspections of existing buildings for AODA compliance. Other Increasing public demands for the development of new by-laws and prompter enforcement of by-laws and address neighbourhood quality of life, nuisance and consumer protection issues. Other Establishing various partnerships to enhance enforcement efforts. Other Certification requirements for Officers (MLEO, OAPSO, etc.) in their areas of expertise to improve efficiency and effectiveness of enforcement practices in the field. Budget Constraints The vast majority of this budget is attributed to salaries and benefits and driven by collective agreements. There would be a significant challenge in achieving a status quo or budget. To do so will require consideration of staff reductions resulting in reduction in service levels and an increase in the City's exposure and liability. 2012-2016 Service changes with financial impact (+/-) Statistics and performance measures A Activity measures Number of complaints investigated 2,824 3,630 3,500 3,700 4,400 4,500 6,450 4,500 5,500 3,750 3,750 3,750 3,750 The number of complaints has increased annually as the issues related to quality of live, nuisance and consumer protection continue to arise at the various committees of Council meetings. With a reduction of staff due to retirements, the number of complaints investigated will decrease if current compliment is not maintained. Page 5 of 7
Number of business licences issued 3,550 3,647 3,475 3,492 3,608 3,614 3,600 4,000 4,000 4,000 4,000 4,000 Number of taxi licences issued 1,380 1,350 1,220 1,120 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 1,150 The number of licences is stable due to the by-law cap of licences relative to population. Number of Residential Rental Unit licences issued. 1,870 2,500 3,000 3,500 4,000 4,000 4,000 B Efficiency measures Outstanding Complaints not investigated 16 47 57 79 25 30 150 150 300 300 300 300 MLEO staff continue to strive to respond to all complaints in a timely fashion. With the introduction of enforcement teams, the response rate to complaints has improved. With a reduction of staff due to retirement, response rates will decrease. Page 6 of 7
C Effectiveness/Quality/Satisfaction measures Vital Services By-law 3 28 232 211 200 160 175 175 180 200 200 200 Efficiency measures have been implemented to ensure that no tenant will have their vital services disconnected in cases where the landlord is responsible for the property vital services. Property clean-ups 300 500 500 400 600 650 626 600 600 600 600 600 600 With the introduction of two teams of clean up crews and higher administration charges, properties are brought into compliance in a timely fashion at the cost of the property owner in violation of a by-law prohibition. Page 7 of 7